Page 20 of A Bride for the Icy Duke
Whisper something scandalous in his ear at a formal event. Lydia trailed her finger across the words, something heating in her lower belly at the thought. Now,thiswas interesting. How would someone as stiff and buttoned up as the duke respond to such behavior? But, for this to work, she would have to drag him to another social eventbeforehe dragged her away...
Sneak into his rooms at night. Well, this was perhaps a little too scandalous—and yet she had an odd curiosity to see how the duke slept. Did he still scowl then? Did his hands shake? Or did he prowl the manor at night like a beast in search of prey?
Kissing (outdoors).Lydia shook her head firmly. There would be no kissing of any description, indoorsoroutdoors. If she had a pen, she would draw a line straight through it.
Bathe together. Absolutely not. Categoricallynot. That would befartoo scandalous!
Lydia closed the book with a snap, placing it on the nearest shelf, and tucked the list in her pocket. Now, all she had to do was convince her husband to remain here for the duration it took her to complete her list.
And who knew—perhaps by the end of it all, he might be prepared to keep her as his wife. At a distance, of course.
CHAPTER SEVEN
“Absolutely not.” Alexander pinched his nose, doing his best not to lose his temper at Lydia’s hopeful expression.
He ought to have known this would be too easy.
“Philips agrees,” she added, not seeming too cowed by his outburst. “He thinks it would be more sensible to delay our journey until the roads are clear.”
Alexander sucked in a deep breath. More than his desire to be rid of this ridiculous farce of a marriage, he wanted to escape this house and all the bad memories it still held. But, little as he wanted to admit it, Lydia and Philips were right. The conditions were not ideal for traveling. And as much as he wanted to leave, he could never allow himself to do anything that would put her in danger.
“…Very well,” he finally conceded gruffly. “But the moment the snow clears, we are leaving.”
“Oh, of course.” She smiled, her face a little too innocent. “But in the meantime, we should make the most of this time together.”
“Make the…mostof it?”
“I know I must have seemed a little cold to you when you first arrived,” she said. “And I apologize. Seeing you again—it brought back a lot of emotions, and I confess, I consider this my home now.”
His ever-present guilt stirred in his chest. Of course she considered this her home; it had been for the past year. And of course she saw him as the villain of her story, coming to drag her away from everything she loved, or thereabouts. The melodrama of the situation did not ease his conscience even remotely.
“I am sorry I missed you at breakfast,” she continued. “I would like to dine with you this evening, if you are amenable?”
“You would?” He looked down at her, trying to ascertain her motives. Surely this could not come from a wish to get to know him. Their dance last night had been enough to convince him she wanted nothing more to do with him.
She peeked up at him through her lashes. “I would, Alexander.”
For a reason he couldn’t quite explain, the sound of his name on her tongue punched him in the gut.
Alexander.
He didn’t know why it hit him so hard—he barely knew this chit.
